Background
The Viet Nam Cleaner Production Centre (VNCPC) was established in 1998 within the framework of UNIDO/UNEP NCPC project. It is at Hanoi University of Technology (HUT) at the Institute for Environmental Science and Technology. The vision of the VNCPC is to play a catalytic and coordinating role as national focal point for the promotion and implementation of eco-efficient industrial production techniques in small and medium sized enterprises, but also in the education of consultants and students.
Within the framework of the project the Institute of Environmental Technology of FHBB supports the VNCPC as so called “Reference Centre”. Task of FHBB is the building up of capacity by providing of training, information, management services and know how about clean technologies. Within the scope of the Contract between FHBB and UNIDO the training of Vietnamese students in Switzerland is foreseen. Via the VNCPC the HUT thus enquired FHBB to support two Students in realizing their master thesis. Aim of the projects is to execute real know-how transfer between Switzerland and Vietnam on two current topics in the range of environmental technology. The following two topics were proposed:

Implementation of Environmental Management System ISO 14001 in Vietnam: situation analysis, Swiss know-how transfer and recommendations
ISO 14001 has been regarded as an essential tool to strengthen environmental management systems (EMS) at the facilities worldwide. However, in Vietnam, the response of organisations to ISO 14001 is still small in comparison to other developing Asian countries. The research goal of the master thesis is to find ways in order to achieve an increasing number of ISO 14001 adoptions as well as solutions to improve the existing EMS in Vietnam.
To attain these targets the author gives an overview of the situation of implementing ISO 14000 series worldwide based on literature research and evaluates the current status of implementing ISO 14001 in Vietnam with benefits and obstacles. The thesis also shows the possibilities to combine Cleaner Production methodology and ISO 14001 at the firm level. Moreover the practice of implementing ISO 14001 at Toyota Company in Vietnam is considered and compared with the implementation at a Swiss metal processing enterprise in order to gain experience from respective projects in a developed country.
The results of the thesis are summarized and transformed into a set of recommendations that is a useful guidance for both state authorities and facilities in Vietnam on what they should do to achieve widespread adoptions of ISO 14001 EMS and to improve existing ISO 14001 EMS at the firm level.

Statistical Data Modelling of Air Pollution Concentrations from Road Traffic
Transport emissions have been identified as one of the most important sources of air pollution. With the increasing volume of traffic Vietnamese authorities and research institutes are now starting to study impacts of traffic emissions on air quality in order to develop necessary emission inventories and transportation plans. Nevertheless the topic is new for Vietnamese scientist and the respective know how has first to be built up in the country.
With this study a first step in this direction shall be done. The study is aimed at providing a linkage between traffic parameters, meteorological data and air quality concentrations on the example of a specific site in Switzerland. Based on measured air quality data, calculations of emission rates and weather data a statistical model shall be developed. The development of this equation can serve two purposes: One is to provide means of forecasting the incidence of extreme pollution episodes and the other is to strengthen the database against which theoretical analysis of pollutant emission and dispersion may be validated.
The goal of this work are to obtain the statistical model to estimate in real-time, short term forecasting of CO and NOx concentrations for the selected site. The strengths and weaknesses of the model shall be discussed and compared with other model types (e.g. empirical models) and the gained know-how shall be the basis for further studies and model developments for Vietnam situations.

Maurice Jutz, Fachhochschule beider Basel, Institut für Umwelttechnik: m.jutz@fhbb.ch
Dr. Tran Van Nhan, Vietnam Cleaner Production Centre, Hanoi: vncpc@un.org.vn